My First Dinner With the Drumlin Farm CSA – Kale & Beet Green Pasta

By Kevin Johnson

A good friend was unable to use their small CSA basket this week from Drumlin Farm and suggested I pick it up instead – an offer I immediately accepted! I apologize for the quality of the attached photos but it was a last minute decision to take some photos of dinner prep tonight.

Included in the fresh food we received was some beautiful fresh kale – a personal favorite of mine. We decided to harvest some fresh beet greens from our own garden to complement the kale and whipped up a wonderful pasta. If you’ve never had fresh greens – right from the garden – prepared like this, I promise you’re in for a treat!

The Recipe (makes about 4 good sized portions):

• 4 slices of bacon – cut into 1/4-1/2 inch strips (the short way)
• 3 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
• About a pound of fresh kale with thick stems trimmed off – leaves coarsely chopped (we made it tonight with about 1/2 kale and 1/2 fresh beet greens – experiment until you find YOUR perfect recipe!)
• 2 cups low-salt home made chicken broth
• 1 pound of your favorite dry spaghetti
• 1/2 – 1 cup coarsely grated fontina cheese

Directions:

1. Cook bacon in a large skillet until browned but not yet too crisp. Take out of pan and put onto a paper towel lined plate to drain. Pour off all but 3 tablespoons or so of the fat in the pan.
2. Cook garlic in the same skillet bacon was cooked in over medium until golden (stir frequently!). Takes only about 2 minutes. Start adding 1/2 the kale/beet green mixture – tossing with tongs until JUST wilted (about 2 mintes). Add the rest of the greens and season with some salt and pepper. Cook – tossing frequently until all the greens have wilted (about another 2 minutes). Add the chicken broth and cover. Simmer until greens are tender and much of the liquid has absorbed (another 10 minutes or so).
3. At the same time as step 2, cook pasta in a large pot until al dente. Drain but KEEP 1 cup of the cooking water. Put the pasta back into the pot and add the greens and cheese along with any remaining chicken broth in the skillet – toss with tongs to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste. If too dry (doubtful) you can add back a little of the cooking water you set aside.
4. Top with bacon and serve!

We used some yellow tomatoes and a cucumber from our CSA, combined it with some fresh parsley and red tomatoes from our garden and tossed it with some olive oil, balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper to make a fresh light side salad. You could try substituting the fontina cheese with something else but the fontina gives it a nice little kick.

Eating local has never been easier or more tasty!